As the only person capable of bending all four elements, the Avatar is responsible for maintaining harmony among the four nations, not to mention the balance between our human world and the spirit realm too. Yet when it comes to The Last Airbender's fandom, it's not 12 year-old Aang who unites us all, it's Uncle Iroh, an old man from the Fire Nation who loves tea and corny jokes almost as much as he loves Zuko, his impulsive young nephew.
Iroh is so much more than just a harmless old uncle figure, even if his own country can't see it. But even if he was the weak underdog of this story, that still wouldn't be the reason why fans have embraced Iroh so readily when his own people could not. No, instead Iroh is beloved because he embodies strength of a very different kind, a warmth that his brother, Fire Lord Ozai, and the rest of the Fire Nation could never hope to understand.
